The Dance Interface

An interactive interface for exploring Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
“The Dance” was one of our most frequently accessed objects in the original site. Built in Flash, The Dance object featured full length video from multiple viewpoints including close-up shots and all our annotations. An interactive interface allowed users turn on different views and hear commentary by William Forsythe and an example of him "singing" the phrasing and choreographic structure of the dance. The video of the dance and its data play in syn. The interface displayed the full spatial and attribute data set as text scrolling in time with the dance as it plays out. We also included visualization of the three choreographic systems in the dance—cues, alignments, movement material—in a timeline below the video. The timeline was interactive, allowing users to view each of the systems independently or together as one visual expression of complexity.

In this archive site, we provide video documentation of Flash interface for “The Dance” and an explanatory video of the interface from 2012 by Maria Palazzi. We also provide top and front views of the full work that served as our core research references.

About the filming of the dance
One Flat Thing, reproduced by William Forsythe, premiered as a live performance in 2000. In 2005, to serve the needs of this project and a parallel dancefilm project directed by Thierry de Mey, a 15 minute version of the piece was filmed in the Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof train station in Frankfurt, Germany. The dancers are costumed in distinct color combinations to aid computer vision tracking of individual performers for our data analysis. This performance was shot from three orthographic viewpoints (front, top and side) enabling us to synchronize and track their positions in three-dimensional space over time.

• One Flat Thing, reproduced (2000)
  Choreographer: William Forsythe
  Sound Score: Thomas Willems
  
  Stage premiere (2000)
  Bockenheimer Depot, Frankfurt, Germany (23 minutes)
  Dancers in stage premiere (14):
  Steffi Arndt, Francesca Carotti, Veronique Gaillard, Amancio Gonzalez, Jill Johnson, Prue Lang, Fabrice Mazliah, Agnes Noltenius, Georg Reischl, Tony Rizzi, Christopher Roman, Richard Siegal, Alessio Silvestrin, Ander Zabala
  
  Video adaptation (2006)
  Director: Thierry de Mey for French Television MK2
  Bockenheimer Depot, Frankfurt, Germany (15 minutes 30 seconds)
  Dancers in source video for video, online, and installation works (17):
  Yoko Ando, Cyril Baldy, Francesca Caroti, Dana Caspersen, Amancio Gonzalez, Sang Jijia, David Kern, Marthe Krummenacher, Prue Lang, Ioannis Mantafounis, Fabrice Mazliah, Roberta Mosca, Georg Reischl, Jone San Martin, Christopher Roman, Elizabeth Waterhouse, Ander Zabala
  
  Online premiere in synchronousobjects.osu.edu (2009)
  
  U.S. museum premiere (2009)
  Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, OH
  Curator: Charles Helm
  
  European museum premiere (2010)
  PACT Zollverein, Essen, Germany
  ISEA and Ruhr 2010 European Cultural Capital
  Curator: Andreas Broekmann
  
  

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• Synchronous Objects The Dance Interface
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Alignment Annotations

Alignments are short instances of synchronization between dancers.

About Alignment Annotations
Published April 1, 2009
In this object we illustrate patterns of alignment, a key component of the dance’s visual structure. Alignments are short instances of synchronization between dancers in which their actions share some, but not necessarily all, attributes.

Our goal with this object was to make the spatial and temporal patterns of the dance’s alignments spring into view as you watch. We were interested in creating a look for our annotations that was legible and diagrammatic, but would reflect individual nuances in shape and timing.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“This was a very labor-intensive object to produce. Each line required individual refinements in form and timing. And deciding which alignments to mark was a painstaking process. Originally, we marked hundreds more alignments than the ones you see in the final version. As we learned to read the dance, we made better decisions about which alignments were most significant in relation to others and would best help to elucidate the dance’s structure. Here you can see samples of the different ways we explored marking alignments. Some are more visually elaborate, but make it harder to see patterns among them. We chose this final look because we felt it achieved the best balance of expressive and diagrammatic qualities.”
Norah Zuniga Shaw
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are a partial representation of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost, namely dynamic interaction, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original object included three sections of annotations (shared here as videos) that could be interacted with by turning on or off the video of the dance. Users could watch the annotations with the video of dance revealing patterns in the choreography. They could also watch the alignment annotations without video and experience a parallel virtual manifestation of counterpoint in the dance.

• Synchronous Objects Alignment Annotations
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Cue Annotations

The cueing system is a network of relationships.

About Cue Annotations
Published April 1, 2009
In this object, you can watch the cueing system of the dance unfold in a rapidly shifting network of relationships. Time is organized as dancers give and receive cues, collectively determining the flow of the dance.

Our goals with this object were to make the cues immediately visible and also to illustrate the expressive qualities in the choreographic system of One Flat Thing, reproduced. We were interested in the intensity and integrity of the dancers’ attention to one another, the rapid exchange of information, and the different qualities of motion in each cue response.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“We went through an iterative design process that combined technical, analytical, and creative methods. Ideas and concepts emerged, often simultaneously, and these were shared, expanded on, and manipulated by members of the team. In looking for a suitable solution, our priority became the integration of the marks’ readability and expressive qualities. During this process, we were also gathering data from the dancers about when they gave and received cues. This data is recorded in our attribute database, which is the foundation for many of our objects.”
Maria Palazzi
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are a partial representation of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost, namely dynamic interaction, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original object included four sections of annotations (shared here as videos) that could be interacted with by turning on or off the video of the dance. Users could watch the animated lines with or without video and experience a parallel virtual manifestation of counterpoint.

• Synchronous Objects Cue Annotations
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Counterpoint Tool

Alignment and counterpoint in an interactive environment.

View two short demonstration videos for the Counterpoint Tool, one of the most popular objects on the original site. These videos were created in 2009 to be presented alongside the interactive tool which was accessible in the web browser but is no longer accessible in that form.

The first video is a tool demo and the second includes a special voiceover of William Forsythe and Ben Schroeder talking about its features and creating counterpoint with the moving widgets.

About the Counterpoint Tool
Published April 1, 2009
In the Counterpoint Tool we introduce concepts of alignment and counterpoint in an interactive environment. For this object, we created a pattern-generating algorithm that directs the motions of performing “widgets” as they rotate and move through space. In the original tool you could work with these widgets to build relationships of action with more or less unison and difference. The tool’s sliders and buttons determined the number and scale of the widgets, influenced their motion, and turned on or off the marks indicating alignments.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“There are many ways to analyze and generate new creations from a phenomenon like One Flat Thing, reproduced. With the Counterpoint Tool we were interested in scoring the central conceptual territory of the dance (alignments as generators of counterpoint) in an interactive space that could be both instructive and creative.”
Norah Zuniga-Shaw
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

“The Counterpoint Tool uses a procedural algorithm to create the motion of its performing widgets. The algorithm makes random selections from possibilities that are defined by a built-in structure of space and timing and by choices made by the user. We wanted to create a simple algorithm that expressed the essence of counterpoint while keeping the complexity and beauty we saw in the dance. We created several prototypes to explore ideas and sharpen our understanding, keeping both technical and artistic considerations in mind. Even after the initial prototypes, our process was highly iterative; our experience with each new revision of the program informed the next.”
Ben Schroeder
Computer Scientist and Programming Artist, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are partial representations of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost, namely dynamic interaction, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original Counterpoint Tool was an interactive tool that provided sliders and buttons for users to change the amount of unison and difference in shape, speed, and motion of the widgets, playfully gaining a feel for the concept of counterpoint in a simplified visual environment.

• Synchronous Objects Counterpoint Tool
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Cue Visualizer

The Cue Visualizer provides an active window into the entire system of cues in the dance.

About Cue Visualizer
Published April 1, 2009
The Cue Visualizer provides an active window into the entire system of cues in the dance. Rather than focusing on individual dancers, this object brings their collective network of communication and spatial distribution to the forefront. As you watch, cue receivers flash and then connecting lines are drawn to them from cue givers when they trigger a response.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“The Cue Visualizer came about as a way to illustrate the cues over time and to allow the user to compress, overlap, and examine the relationships between cues. By combining tracking data (for location in space) and cue data, and by removing the video of the dance, we present a visual reduction that allows the user to study only the cue networks. Bill foregrounds these networks in the dance, and our persisting lines deliberately emphasize the web of connections they make.”
Maria Palazzi
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

“With more than 200 cues in this dance, no single person knew all of them before this project. We unearthed the cueing system by interviewing each of the dancers and recording their accounts in our attribute data set. Then we tracked the dancers over the course of the dance to assemble their spatial data. This object brings those two forms of data together and provides some viewing control. It helped us answer questions we had about the spatial characteristics of the cueing system and its dynamics.”
Norah Zuniga Shaw
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are partial representations of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost, namely dynamic interaction, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original Cue Visualizer was an interactive tool that allowed users to adjust what they saw by compressing or jumping through time, deciding how much the lines accumulated, and by choosing to view the cues with or without the table grid.

For this archive site, view a video of visualizations generated by the Cue Visualizer playing out over the 15-minutes of the dance. This was originally prepared for a multipart interactive video installation of the work, Degrees of Unison (2010). The installation premiered at PACT Zollverein for Ruhr 2010 European Cultural Capital events and toured internationally until 2018.

• Synchronous Objects Cue Visualizer
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Movement Density

In this object, geographers use a spatial summary statistic called density surface to look at where the dancers spend most of their time.

About Movement Density
Published April 1, 2009
In the Movement Density map we show where dancers spent the most time in One Flat Thing, reproduced. Using our data, the team tracked how long dancers spent in any one location over the course of the dance. This total time is shown in the video as peaks and mountain-like accumulations that create a landscape of duration. This landscape is then separated in the video, generating an individual map for each dancer, and these separate maps can be compared to look at choreographic 'hot-spots' and areas that remained relatively unused.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“After being introduced to the dance piece and the data that was generated by the research team I could see many interesting questions emerge, from the standpoint of theory as well as method development. For me it was the use of space and the dynamic interaction between dancers in One Flat Thing, reproduced that struck a chord, but others may find completely different dimensions in the work and that's what is so exciting. What intrigues me most is how much similarity there is between choreography and daily life as a spatial phenomenon (which we study a lot as geographers). There are some rules of interaction, but also a fair amount of improvisation in both ‘worlds’.”
Ola Ahlqvist
Contributing Research Specialist, Geography, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. Some key elements of the work are lost without the interactive interface (view the original interface). The standalone videos are a partial representation of what we call “objects" each of which included interactive features, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Movement Density
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Data Fan

An analytical representation of the data and a conceptual object.

About Data Fan
Published April 1, 2009
In this object, the dance is translated into a dynamic three-dimensional Data Fan that creates its own forms of counterpoint. The animation is generated using alignment data from the dance that determines the number of blades in the fan. Then a series of geometric operations fold and twist the data around itself, revealing different layers of detail at each moment.

The goal with this object was to create a new manifestation of the dance that could reflect its underlying principles. It can be experienced as an analytical representation of the data and a conceptual object.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“This dense dynamic sculpture was created to visualize choreographic data. The geometry twists and folds making nearby parts (which correspond to neighboring sections of the dance) move through one another. The constant rebuilding of the object makes complex details emerge briefly. Though this began as a way to present the data to find new structures, in the process I learned more by seeing the dance echoed in the overlaps, juxtapositions, counterpoint, and shifting scales of alignments.”
Matthew Lewis
Generative Designer, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are partial representations of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost, namely dynamic interaction, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original Data Fan object was a video and the interface included commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Data Fan
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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3D Alignment Forms

Tracing dancer movement from a variety of viewpoints over time.

About 3D Alignment Forms
Published April 1, 2009
In this object, alignments between the dancers become a shifting landscape of three-dimensional surfaces. Alignments are essential to how visual relationships are constructed in the dance. Here you can watch as they create an independent architecture of form and flow.

The section animated here comes from the alignments between Ioannis and Cyril in their duet at the beginning of the dance. Working in three-dimensional space, we looked for relationships between traces of the dancers’ motions and explored changing viewpoints over time.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“Alignments that were first established in two-dimensional space through a digital drawing technique were then translated into three-dimensional space to create more sculptural forms. When we felt we saw a relationship we established a surface between the trace lines by lofting. Lofting is a fundamental computer graphics modeling technique for building surfaces. The technique of lofting originated in boat-building as the skin of the boat was stretched across the underlying structural ribs. In creating the animation, we used the camera to explore the forms from a variety of viewpoints over time.”
Maria Palazzi
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. Some key elements of the work are lost without the interactive interface (view the original interface). The standalone videos are a partial representation of what we call “objects" each of which included interactive features, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects 3D Alignment Forms
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Difference Marks

The accumulation of the dancers’ motion over time.

About Difference Marks
Published April 1, 2009
This object visualizes the accumulation of the dancers’ motion over time. Here the duration of the dance is compressed from 15 mins. 30 secs. to 1 min. 30 secs., and any instance of motion (what we call a localized difference) is noted with a small mark. The colors of these marks change over time from red to blue, revealing distinct layers and patterns of motion as the piece progresses

One of the goals for this object, which looks down at the dance from above, was to see how much the dancers both reinforce the grid of tables and subvert it. As the animation progresses, the outlines of the tables grow distinct as the dancers interact with them.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“This Difference Marks experiment is an example of our interest in finding many ways to look at the dance and discover its patterns of organization. We stayed in ‘real space’ with this object, but freed ourselves to compress time. We wanted to see the impact of the tables on the pathways of motion, and we were inspired by several interesting visual references that we collected of motion trails and tracks (notably Scott Snibbe’s installation You Are Here). Those questions and references were the jumping-off point for exploring motion differencing. One interesting discovery: a single quadrant in the front line of tables is never used.”
Maria Palazzi
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

“Instead of tracking dancers through time, this approach marks instants of localized difference: where any motion is noticed, a small mark is made (with a subjective threshold selected for "noticed" and "motion"). An individual shoulder or leg gesture might merit a mark depending on both speed and the axis of rotation.”
Matthew Lewis
Generative Designer, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are a partial representation of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost.

The original Difference Marks object was a video and the interface included commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Difference Marks
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Difference Forms

Ghost-like traces that follow the dancers’ motions.

About Difference Forms
Published April 1, 2009
In this object we use video processing to detect differences from frame to frame and create ghost-like traces that follow the dancers’ motions. The changes at the edge of the movements accumulate in emerging and dissolving contours. Looking down at the dance from above, you can follow patterns as they emerge: fleeting alignments, bursts of turns, clusters of action in similar timing, and horizontal and vertical flows

This was one our first experiments in visualizing the dance and discovering which generative processes could reveal choreographic structure while communicating new information. We were interested in animation as an analytical tool as well as an expressive visual in its own right.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“This experiment was one of the earliest examples of deciding which generative processes and reductions to pursue in search of new visual representations. Movement was extracted by attending to differences in the dancers' contours. These edge changes accumulate, making fleeting relationships more easily noticed. Color is a byproduct of the process, adding visual interest and depth separation, but it also might encode movement quality information.”
Matthew Lewis
Generative Designer, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. Some key elements of the work are lost without the interactive interface (view the original interface). The standalone videos are a partial representation of what we call “objects" each of which included interactive features, commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

The original Difference Forms object was a video and the interface included commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Difference Forms
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Noise Void

Carving out negative space from the visual noise of the dancers' environment.

About Noise Void
Published April 1, 2009
In this object, visual noise in the source video is amplified and emphasized, filling the screen with information. The dancers' motions then carve away at this volume of noise, creating a series of shifting, temporary voids. The noise seeps back into the empty spaces as motion fades from memory and attention. This animation was one of several attempts at seeing the dynamic boundaries of action in the dance.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
Using custom video-processing filters, this object creates “difference forms” out of the dancers, who carve out negative space from the visual noise of their environment. This carving reveals movement material patterns as well as spatial placement over the length of the dance. Because carving also happens on top of the tables, this method allowed us to imagine the tables as permeable areas, changing our initial ideas about how the dancers occupy space, and also how space can be considered as occupied.

We’ve added a delay that allows negative space to build and then dissipate over time, leaving time for the eye to recognize areas of activity. This way negative spaces can blend and overlap, allowing viewers to observe activity contributed by the group. The interesting analytical and creative choices that our generative designer Matthew Lewis made as he explored these noise volumes inspired us to create the Video Abstraction Tool.

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are a partial representation of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost.

The original Noise Void object was a video and the interface included commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Noise Void
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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Motion Volumes

An environment of three-dimensional forms.

About Motion Volumes
Published April 1, 2009
In this object, the outer edges of the dancers’ motions in One Flat Thing, reproduced are transformed into volumes that emerge and dissolve in space.

Process Notes
Published April 1, 2009
“The forms of Motion Volumes remind me of environmental artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work, such as Wrapped Coast (1968–69) and Wrapped Reichstag (1971–95). In many ways this is a ‘wrapped’ performance of the dance. Seeing the dance in this form presents a unique visual in which individual performers meld into and are released from the wrap’s skin. This visual treatment reduces the dance to territories of grouped movement and accentuates the trends of groups of dancers rather than individuals. The jittery movement between frames is a lovely by-product of the process and lends a kind of handmade feel to the animation, one we often associate with stop-motion animation.”
Maria Palazzi
Creative Director, Synchronous Objects

“This object represents the Difference Forms animation as an environment of three-dimensional forms, with dynamic volumes generated by the dancers’ paths through space. As opposed to the drawn and painterly qualities of Difference Forms, this shifting maze of sculpted forms has a more tactile and immersive quality as the geometry appears and dissolves rapidly at the vibrating surface of the dancers' motion envelopes. The initial goal of examining and exploring our data in different ways resulted in an animation that I think emphasizes the dance’s explicit choreography of attention.”
Matthew Lewis
Generative Designer, Synchronous Objects

Archive Notes
Published June 1, 2022
The original interface for the project is no longer accessible due to the final demise of Flash in 2021. Therefore, we are now sharing some of the objects as stand-alone videos in this archive site of the work. These are a partial representation of what we call “objects.” Without the interactive interface some key elements of the work are lost.

The original Motion Volumes object was a video and the interface included commentary, process videos, and cross-navigation links for non-linear discovery.

• Synchronous Objects Motion Volumes
• Creative Directors: William Forsythe, Maria Palazzi, Norah Zuniga Shaw

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